Finding Luck
by bluheat
Summary: When someone new waltzes into Yamabuki and takes the school by storm, what will the effects be on Sengoku? Will Nomura Midori finally be happy in the boxing ring? [NomuraxSengoku] I understand that Sengoku barely ever shows up on fanfics but please give it a shot!
1. Chapter 1

Disclamer: I only wish I owned Prince of Tennis.

The first day of middle school is frightening for everyone, I'm sure. People who say that are wrong. It's TERRIFYING. Mom always said that I had to face my fears but I'd rather not go face spiders, heights, and first days of school.

I sighed as a ruffled my long brown hair before dragging a brush through it and slipping on my uniform. I knew better than to mess around with makeup. My older sister used to use me as her doll when I was young, and I had too many bad experiences with makeup to use it in the near future.

"Midori! Come downstairs and eat!" my Dad yelled.

"Coming!" I screamed.

I huffed, took one last look in the mirror, and swept my bangs to the side of my face while I turned on my heel and grabbed my new backpack and my sports bag.

Bouncing down the stairs, I smelled something burning.

"Heh Midori, I seemed to have ruined the eggs again." Dad grinned.

I rolled my eyes and grabbed the pan and dumped the black tar into the trash can.

"Arigatou, but I think I'll just eat cereal Dad."

Dad snorted in reply.

"I'm proud of you, you know. Ever since your mom...you've just become so independent."

I smiled uncomfortably. "Arigatou."

"Look at you, you're turning into a beautiful woman."

"Dad, I'm 12."

He turned on the fake waterworks to annoy me.

"But...(sob)...you're so...(sob)..."

I shot him an exasperated look while munching on my cereal.

He grinned. "You're going to be late for your first day!" he shouted.

I rolled my eyes again, grabbed my bags, and ran out of the apartment.

I truly loved my dad. He was the only person I had other than my sister. Now that she's in college, I refused to rely on her anymore. She was digging herself out of the hole that our family fell into.

I ran to school, knowing that I only had five minutes to be in my first class. I sprinted through the school gates and promptly collided into a mass that didn't budge.

"Oh, lucky! You're cute!" the mass grinned.

I glared back at him. "What's so lucky about being late on the first day of school?"

"We get to meet each other! Lucky!"

I narrowed my eyes at the boy promptly ran off towards my class.

I still heard, "Darn, she ran off. Maybe I'm not so lucky today."

Upon entering my new classroom, I was promptly scolded by the new teacher. I chose a seat that was left at the front of the room. I had to rely on having good grades to boost the teacher's impression of me.

Who strolled in late? The lucky boy. He came in a whole fifteen minutes late. I'm definetly unlucky if he's in my class of 2-A.

He seemed to have forgotten about our banter at the school gates as he grinned around as he ruffled his orangish-brown hair mischeviously.

Thankfully, the teacher yelled at him more than he did at me and he sat at the back of the classroom.

The first twenty minutes of middle school sucked. Seriously.

I'd really appreciate any reviews and comments! I should update within a week. Please be patient with me! I'm trying to create a solid base for the story.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclamer: Yeah, I really wish I owned PoT.

I sighed while I pressed my pencil to paper and observed the teacher's scrawl on the board. It wasn't like me to be so bored on the first day of school. I squinted at the chemistry equation involving something about carbon and murmured to myself about how teaching on the first day of school seemed pointless. I glanced around the room and saw other students wearily looking at the board or attempting to stay awake. One wasn't attempting at all. The messy haired boy gently snored away while the chemistry teacher remained oblivious to his surroundings.

"That is all for today, students. You are now dismissed for lunch." the teacher said without turning around. Good thing he didn't, otherwise he would probably be furious with the amount of kids rubbing their eyes and half-asleep.

My classmates jumped to their feet and ran out the door as soon as possible. I remained to gather my books into my heavy bag. Seeing the snoring boy, I sighed and felt pity. Ambling over, I tapped his shoulder lightly.

"Ehh…five more minutes," He moaned. My eye twitched as I frowned. I took one of the books in my hand and dropped it on to the hand that covered his face.

"AHHHH," he yelled.

I smirked. "Well look who's up?"

He blearily opened his eyes and my eyes widened in seeing his unexpectedly blue eyes.

"Where is everyone? Do I know you?"

My eye twitched again as a simply turned on my heel and walked out of the classroom. I hated people who wasted my time.

* * *

"Hello. My name is Nomura Midori. I recently transferred to Yamabuki and I'm in my second year. May I sit here?" I asked, while looking at the three girls who looked back at me.

They smiled and scooted over. "My name is Kimura Akari," said the bluenette, "and this is Mori Azami and Hashimoto Saya," she said while pointing at a redhead and black-haired girl respectively. "We're all second years."

"So, what do you do for fun?" I smiled while munching on my bento.

"I play tennis! I am going to try out for the school's girl's team this afternoon," Kimura replied.

"I play soccer along with Hashimoto," Mori answered.

"What do you do?" Hashimoto questioned.

"Oh nothing really. I used to draw," I lied.

"Hmm… really? I think you're hiding something," Mori said while narrowing her eyes.

"Mori!" Hashimoto exclaimed. "Sorry, she's very insightful and can read expressions and faces, which is very helpful in soccer. But she's also very blunt and doesn't realize when other people want to hide details about themselves in real life."

I sighed and smiled. "She's not wrong though. I….I…I don't do an average activity. Not like student council or tennis or soccer."

Kimura widened her eyes in curiosity. "…Then, what do you do?"

"I…I'm sorry. I'm not…" I stammered.

"She's not ready to tell us yet," Mori said gazing at my face.

"I'm not, but I suppose I could show you," I said grasping my sports bag. I took a deep breath and slowly unzipped my duffel.

I knew how unusual it was for me to compete in this as a girl, but I didn't mind being different. It just made me more special. The teasing, the laughing, wondering how a little girl would compete, it only made me stronger.

I did it for myself and my pride. The only person who really understood that was my sister and my dad. They supported my no matter what. No one else really did. In elementary school, when other girls found out they laughed and avoided me. They claimed I was really a guy and to stop wearing skirts. Just because I chose to do this for fun never meant that I wasn't who I claimed to be.

I lifted my boxing gloves out of my bag and placed them on to the table. I shyly looked at the three girls who looked completely shocked.

"…N…Nani?"

"I took up boxing to take out my frustration with my family and what happened with my mom. I was surprised to find out that I actually enjoyed it. I've done it ever since, even though it has been really annoying that no one takes girls in boxing seriously. There isn't a boxing club at Yamabuki Jr. High, but there is one in the high school division. I already spoke to the school's teacher and coach and they agreed to let me practice there along with practicing in a club outside of school."

The three girls simply blinked in response to my monologue.

Kimura was the first to break the silence. "…Sugoi..."

My eyebrows furrowed because of the lack of girls getting up from the table and running away.

"You're very brave…and different…for trying a sport like that," Hashimoto nodded.

"I understand now…"Mori smiled.

I beamed. "Most people run in the other direction."

"We play sports. We understand. We aren't taken as seriously as guys even if we're just as good, if not better." Hashimoto replied.

I only laughed. "I don't hear many people saying that."

"Anyways, so have you met any new people worth mentioning?"Kimura grinned.

"Ehh…not really," I muttered, while a messy orangish-brown haired guy came to mind.

Mori simply raised one eyebrow in response.

"I ran into a person at the gates, causing me to be late to my first class though," I added hastily.

"Did he have messy orangish-brown hair and blue eyes?" Mori smirked while pointing at someone else a couple tables over who was shoving food into his mouth.

"Maybe," I muttered.

"Hmm….I know him. I believe his name is Sengoku. Sengoku Kiyosumi." Kimura pondered. "He plays tennis too. I've heard he's quite good, especially for a second-year. He barely ever loses in games."

"He's a baka. All he does is flirt. He fell asleep in chemistry today. Who falls asleep on the first day of school?" I muttered, agitated.

"Hmm?" Hashimoto grinned.

The bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch period. I got up from the table and slipped my gloves back into my duffel bag.

* * *

After the last class of the day, I walked out of the school building, ready for my first day of practice at Yamabuki high school, which was next to the Jr. High School. I turned to see where all the shouting was coming from. I spied a messy, orangish-brown haired guy with a tennis racket in one hand who waved to a bunch of girls who flocked around the tennis court.

"I'm just going to get a drink of water from the fountain!" he called while walking out of the tennis court.

I huffed and continued to walk towards the school's gates.

"Oi! You! Girl with the brown hair!" I heard a guy call out.

My eye twitched and I walked faster. Walking with two big bags is harder than it seems. My duffle bag and my school bag bumped into each other with each step while I briskly walked away from the courts….and towards the water fountain. My eyes widened when I realized who it was and I tried walking faster.

"Come back!" He yelled. I felt a tug at my duffel bag. Being so off balance with the multiple bags, I tumbled to the ground and my duffle bag slid off my arm.

I glared at the offender, huffed, and grabbed my bag and slung it over my shoulder.

"Sumimasen! I just had a feeling I had seen you before," he grinned.

"You have. You made me be late to class and I woke you up before lunch started," I growled back. "Now thanks to you I'm going to be late to boxing." I slapped my hand over my mouth. "I shouldn't have said that! You didn't hear anything!" I exclaimed.

I clutched my duffel bag and my school bag and ran towards the school gates, too embarrassed to stick around.

* * *

I bent over and huffed, hard. I never minded running, but running with weights is painful. Finally, I had reached Yamabuki Sr. High for my first practice. Everything was going to be great. I would meet other girl boxers and I would finally be taken seriously for the first time in my life.

I had already changed into my uniform in the girl's locker room and I pushed open the door to the high school's boxing arena. I instantly walked into what seemed to be the coach.

"Itai…"

"Oh hello, you must be Nomura Midori. I am Hayashi-sensei," a tall man with sandy hair said.

"H..Hai. I was hoping I could use the arena for practice while I'm at Yamabuki Jr. High. Are there any other girl boxers?"

He smiled ruefully. "Look around."

I turned my head and I felt like slamming my head against the wall. Hard. Multiple times. There were only guys. ONLY. GUYS. I sighed. I really shouldn't have expected more but I really hoped otherwise.

"Hey! What is that little girl doing here?"

"This is no place for kids!"

"Especially not for girls!"

I shut my eyes, wishing for the tormenting teenager guys to disappear. I didn't want to deal with others looking down upon me because I was a girl boxer again.

"QUIET! This is the new boxer from Yamabuki Jr. High. She will be practicing with us. Do not underestimate her," the coach explained.

I only looked up at him gratefully. I could see the other boxers mashing their teeth. I knew it wasn't going to be easy to prove myself to the others so it was better to get the protesting out of the way in the beginning.

I sighed, "It's alright sensei, they want to know if I can fight. So, is anyone willing to fight a little girl here?" I looked around the gym, looking others in the eye; challenges only lead to me getting stronger.

"I'll fight you," smirked a long, silver-haired boxers who towered over me.

My eyes narrowed. "So be it."

Hayashi sensei grabbed my arm, "Are you sure you are willing to do this?"

I looked up and nodded. "If I prove myself, they will not look down upon me. Maybe, for once, I'll be respected."

"As you wish Nomura. Be careful. He is not a regular but he is still good."

I simply nodded again and grabbed my gloves. Twisting my hair into a ponytail, I swept my side-bangs out of my face and grimaced, knowing the fight would be tough. I stepped into the ring and jumped a couple times to warn up my legs.

"Heh. This is going to be easy. Watch and learn little girl," my challenger smirked.

"Go Tomura!"

"Beat that girl!"

I shut my eyes, blocking out the cheers for my challenger. I knew better. I only needed to win, nothing else. Winning is all that mattered.

A whistle blew, starting the fight. I focused on the guy in front of me. He smirked and feinted left. I gasped as he nearly landed a blow on my jaw and instantly knew that he wouldn't go easy on me even though I was younger and a different gender. I had to bring all I had. I launched myself backwards and flipped in the air to avoid his attack. His eyes widened in surprise and he rushed towards me. I read his body movement, knowing he would try to aim at my nose. How dirty. I ducked and landed a tough blow on his abdomen. He flew backwards, not expected my jab to have so much power.

He got up, and rushed towards me again. Aiming for my stomach this time, he lowered his arms while jabbing. I jumped up, clearing his fist and getting a clean hook on his face and jabbed at the middle of his chin. He froze and collapsed.

I heard silence as he remained down.

"10…9…8…7…6…" yelled the coach.

"GET UP TOMURA."

"YOU CAN'T LOSE THAT EASILY."

I smiled and noted that I didn't even sweat.

"5…4…3…2…1…and win goes to Nomura!" the coach shouted.

Silence. Complete silence.

"I can't believe it….Tomura lost."

"You have to admit that she was good."

My eyes snapped open; I had never heard a compliment before. I looked up at the coach and he smiled and nodded knowingly.

"Nomura will now practice with us. Are there any objections?" the coach announced.

Silence.

"Go change and go home. Give them one night to get over their shock," the coach murmured to me.

"Hai sensei!" I turned on my heel, grabbed my bag and left with a smile on my face. I don't think I had ever left a practice with smile on my face. I looked up at the sun while hoping that my luck had changed.

* * *

-Sengoku-

As she ran off, I wondered who she was. She never said her name, yet I was sure that I had seen her before. She might have said who she was but I was too busy looking at her long brown hair and dark blue eyes. All I remembered was her saying something about boxing. Possibly her saying that she wanted to learn boxing so she could punch me in the face. I get that often enough. Matter of fact, a girl last week said that if she could, she would have kneed me in a not-so-nice-place.

I noticed something on the ground that looked like a name tag that attaches to bags. Bending over, I grabbed and read the name on it. Nomura Midori.

~Wolf-whistle~

My head snapped up as I fully stood up. I looked around and I saw a third-year girl fluttering her eyelashes at me. She blew a kiss at me and winked, "You don't look bad bending over."

I blushed. I like girls but I'm not so used to such straight-forward flirting. I watched as she strutted off and I looked at the nametag again. "Hmm, Nomura Midori. Omoshiro."

* * *

omoshiro-interesting

sensei-teacher

hai-yes

nani-what

baka-idiot

* * *

Please read and review and favorite! I really need constructive criticism! Thank you!


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I only wish I owned PoT.**

* * *

I'd like to believe that my life was perfect, but wishes don't always come true. As I walked back home, lugging my two heavy bags-one full of chemistry homework and the other with boxing gloves and workout gear-I knew that my luck was looking up. I hadn't felt this happy since I found out that I could successfully skip the first year of junior high: effectively making me a second year. I didn't regret it. I was away from people who laughed at me, picked on me, and I was allowed to be who I wanted to be. I knew it would all go away as soon as other people found out about boxing though. I wasn't really sure why I had revealed my secret to those three girls at lunch, but somehow they accepted me. I regretted opening my mouth in front of that messy orangish-brown haired boy. He would probably tell the whole school that I boxed as an after-school activity.

I looked up, with a skip in my step. I missed my sister. She was the one who always told me that being different was okay. She taught me how to do flips in the arena. She taught me where to aim. She taught me everything. And of course, she always cooked at home to keep Dad away from the stove. He was absolutely hopeless with food, unless if it involved eating it.

I unzipped my school bag and fished around for my cell phone. The silver phone slid into my hand and I dialed my sister's number while slowly walking past a park.

"Hey?"

"Nee-san! Guess what?"

"Hmm? How was your first day of middle school? Who knew my sister was intelligent enough to skip a grade?" she teased.

I pouted. Just because I'm the baby of the family didn't mean I had to be treated like one. "It was fine. But guess what?"

"What?"

"Guess," I grinned.

"No."

"Hmph. You're no fun. Today I had my first day of boxing practice with Yamabuki Sr. High!" I exclaimed.

"So?"

"What do you mean so? I am practicing with guys and I had a challenger today and I won."

"So?"

I frowned. Normally she would be happy for me and she would say so.

"What do you mean so?"

She sighed. "Don't you think I trained you well enough before I left so that you could beat a few measly boys?"

"Well..yeah..but..."

"You thought the match was going to be hard didn't you? And then afterwards you realized that it was an easy win?"

I reflected on the afternoon. She was right; I had thought it was going to be one of the hardest matches I ever had, but a few flips and it was an easy win. My eyes narrowed, "Are you stalking me?"

"Well it's not called stalking if you're miles away. You ought to start believing in your abilities you know. But I am happy for you that you beat him."

"Yeah yeah. How is college?"

"Same old. Has Dad learned to cook yet?"

I laughed. "He burnt eggs this morning."

"That's just impressive," she giggled back. "Anyways, I have work I have to finish. Talk to you later and tell Dad to stay away from the stove."

I smiled wistfully. "Every time I try he pouts. It's not like he's gotten any better in the last four years. Bye Nee-san."

I snap the phone closed, slid it into the right backpack pocket, and promptly collided into a pole.

"Ow..."

I really had to work on my clumsiness. Who walks into poles? I heard chuckling and I slowly turned my head to find the offender.

I saw two boys in white shirts and dark shorts. One had red hair and was talking to a younger girl with a light blue jacket, and the other had chin length black hair and was bouncing a tennis ball on his racket frame with his eyes narrowed in mirth.

I glared back at him.

His expression changed as soon as he saw my glare. My sister taught me how to glare effectively and how to use it as a weapon to make others cower. She literally made me spend two whole days in front of a mirror commanding when I should smile, look normal, and when I should glare. It was effective, especially because of how clumsy I was outside of the ring.

He muttered under his breath, "Well if you had been looking up, you would have seen the pole. It isn't that hard not to put your phone away. Speaking of phones, I have the same phone as you. It's a nice phone but sometimes the battery overheats. The battery was better on my old phone but it broke when someone hit it with a tennis ball. I was really mad at him when he broke it."

He continued to mutter as I dropped my glare and silently judged at his rambling.

"He made it up to me by buying juice for a week. I like juice and I'm thirsty. I think I want some juice. Would you like juice?"

"Uh, well, um, I," I stammered in reply.

"Did I hear you laugh, Shinji? I think that's the first time I've ever heard you laugh!" exclaimed the girl in the light blue jacket.

"No. No no. That wasn't me," the black-haired boy said with a carefully arranged poker face.

I grinned sadistically. "Oh yes. That was him laughing."

"I'm impressed. Anyone who breaks Shinji's poker face is cool in my eyes," she beamed.

"Well, I made him laugh once by squirting orange juice out of my nose," the red-haired boy deadpanned, trying to get the girl to continue their conversation.

Eww. I so did not need to know that. Neither did she apparently, as she shot him a look of disgust and looked away. He blushed in response and promptly shut his mouth.

The boy continued to talk to himself. "I didn't mean to laugh. I don't like laughing in public. I sound like a dolphin. I like dolphins, but the sound coming out from a human is weird. I'm still thirsty and I want juice. I only laughed because she..."

I quickly shoved my duffel bag into his stomach, or at least I hoped it was his stomach.

He gasped and bent over. "OW!"

"Oops. Heh. Muscle spasm." I deadpanned. I looked down and realized I didn't hit him in the stomach, and I promptly blushed.

"Shinji!" the red-haired boy kneeled next to him.

The girl simply giggled. "Nice muscle spasm," she grinned knowingly.

I smiled back. "Thanks."

"I'm Tachibana Ann."

"Nomura Midori. Nice to meet you. Now, I think it's best if I go get Shinji some juice before any other damage is done," I smirked.

She giggled again. "You're probably right. I'll show you where the closest vending machine is. So, do you play tennis?" Tachibana Ann questioned.

"No. My Dad taught me how to when I was younger though. I quit a long time ago," I recalled. "Anyways, what school do you go to?"

"Fudomine Jr. High. I moved here recently. Don't mind Kamio and Shinji. They're on edge from tennis practice. They're freshmen at Fudomine's Jr. High section and the team looks down upon them. They aren't allowed to play, ever. We're all first years, but we're treated like total kids. It's worse for Kamio and Shinji though, because they work really hard during practice but the older and less talented regulars torture them. It's not fair."

"Hmm, I know how they feel," I murmured, remembering how hard it was to prove myself in the boxing ring.

She abruptly halted and turned her head. "What do you mean?"

I cursed my tongue. "Oh look, the vending machine!" I pointed. I ran up to it and closely studied the multitude of drinks displayed, carefully looking at Tachibana An's face. "What flavor does Shinji like most?"

"Um, I don't really know. But everyone likes grape Ponta, so that's a safe bet. So, what do you mean when you said you know how they feel?"

I jabbed at the vending machine's buttons noisily, masking Tachibana's question. She seemed to wait patiently and I sighed. "It's a long story."

"Sorry," she smiles back, "I didn't mean to intrude. But they could really use some advice."

"You don't want my advice," I reply as I grab the dispensed can. "You'd run in the other direction."

"Try me," she challenges, lifting a single eyebrow.

I turn to look at her in the face and don't say anything for a few seconds. She blinks back, expectantly, while walking back towards the boys.

I sigh. "I'm a boxer. Yeah, I know, girls aren't supposed to box. There isn't a junior high division so I box for Yamabuki Senior High. I have to prove myself in the ring before people take me seriously."

"Oh," she nods in understanding. "So you have to work hard all the time so they can't say you shouldn't be in the ring."

"Yeah," I murmur. "It's torture sometimes, but beating your opponents make it worth it."

I hand the can to Shinji who mutters, "Thanks."

I nod in acknowledgement. "Well, it's been nice meeting you all, but I have to go home."

I set off towards home and wave as they yell goodbye.

* * *

**Sorry guys! I've been working on my other story, Swimming with the Big Fish, and I've gotten so immersed in it I totally forgot about this one. Because this was my first story I posted, it doesn't have that much development as my other but I'll try to tel caught up. Thank you to all readers!**


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